Modern Art
The first decades of the 20th century were a period of artistic upheaval, with modern art movements including Cubism, Surrealism, Futurism and Dadaism questioning centuries of traditional views of what art should be. Using abstraction, experimental forms and interdisciplinary techniques, painters, sculptors, photographers, printmakers and performance artists all pushed the boundaries of creative expression.
Major exhibitions, like the 1913 Armory Show in New York City — also known as the “International Exhibition of Modern Art,” in which works like the radically angular Nude Descending a Staircase by Marcel Duchamp caused a sensation — challenged the perspective of viewers and critics and heralded the arrival of modern art in the United States. But the movement’s revolutionary spirit took shape in the 19th century.
The Industrial Revolution, which ushered in new technology and cultural conditions across the world, transformed art from something mostly commissioned by the wealthy or the church to work that responded to personal experiences. The Impressionist style emerged in 1860s France with artists like Claude Monet, Paul Cézanne and Edgar Degas quickly painting works that captured moments of light and urban life. Around the same time in England, the Pre-Raphaelites, like Edward Burne-Jones and Dante Gabriel Rossetti, borrowed from late medieval and early Renaissance art to imbue their art with symbolism and modern ideas of beauty.
Emerging from this disruption of the artistic status quo, modern art went further in rejecting conventions and embracing innovation. The bold legacy of leading modern artists Georges Braque, Pablo Picasso, Frida Kahlo, Salvador Dalí, Henri Matisse, Joan Miró, Marc Chagall, Piet Mondrian and many others continues to inform visual culture today.
Find a collection of modern paintings, sculptures, prints and other fine art on 1stDibs.
1890s Modern Art
Black and White, Silver Gelatin
1920s Modern Art
Canvas, Oil
1960s Modern Art
Silver Gelatin
1920s Modern Art
Lithograph
1790s Modern Art
Etching, Aquatint
1960s Modern Art
Canvas, Oil
1950s Modern Art
Canvas, Oil
Mid-20th Century Modern Art
Charcoal, Newsprint
1910s Modern Art
Paper, Watercolor
1960s Modern Art
Lithograph
1920s Modern Art
Lithograph
1750s Modern Art
Etching
1910s Modern Art
Watercolor
Mid-20th Century Modern Art
Etching
1950s Modern Art
Lithograph
1940s Modern Art
Lithograph
17th Century Modern Art
Paint, Oil
1940s Modern Art
Tempera, Board
1940s Modern Art
Lithograph
1990s Modern Art
Canvas, Oil
1960s Modern Art
Archival Pigment, Color
1950s Modern Art
Lithograph
1980s Modern Art
Lithograph
1960s Modern Art
Lithograph
1970s Modern Art
Silver Gelatin
1960s Modern Art
Lithograph
1960s Modern Art
Lithograph
1920s Modern Art
Paper, Pastel, Pencil
20th Century Modern Art
Paper, Lithograph
1960s Modern Art
Lithograph
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Art
Wood, Acrylic
1960s Modern Art
Canvas, Oil
1950s Modern Art
Metal
Mid-20th Century Modern Art
Lithograph
Mid-20th Century Modern Art
Woodcut
Mid-20th Century Modern Art
Stencil
1930s Modern Art
Canvas, Oil
Mid-20th Century Modern Art
Paper
2010s Modern Art
Conté, Graphite
1960s Modern Art
Lithograph
1940s Modern Art
Lithograph
1970s Modern Art
Archival Pigment
1990s Modern Art
Offset
1920s Modern Art
Handmade Paper, Drypoint
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Art
Archival Pigment
1870s Modern Art
Etching
1990s Modern Art
Oil, Board
1990s Modern Art
C Print
Early 2000s Modern Art
Oil
1930s Modern Art
Canvas, Oil
1930s Modern Art
Canvas, Oil
1950s Modern Art
Lithograph, Stencil
19th Century Modern Art
Etching
1950s Modern Art
Offset
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Art
Archival Pigment
Mid-20th Century Modern Art
Plexiglass, Paper
20th Century Modern Art
Bronze
1920s Modern Art
Etching
1970s Modern Art
Offset
1930s Modern Art
Drypoint, Etching